On 14 May, MINEX Forum had an opportunity to attend a fireside chat with the Right Honourable Dominic Raab—former UK Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister—at the EIT Critical Raw Materials Summit in Brussels.
Raab offered a frank and sobering assessment: Europe is two decades behind China in industrial strategy and supply chain resilience when it comes to critical raw materials.
He pointed to China’s head start and dominant position in the critical minerals market—not only in extraction but across the entire value chain including processing, refining, and end-product manufacturing. In stark contrast, Europe remains highly fragmented, slow-moving, and unclear in governance when it comes to critical materials strategy.
What stood out most? His call for “friendshoring.”
Raab emphasised that the West—particularly Europe—must look beyond its borders and proactively build strategic partnerships with non-EU countries across Africa, South America, the Middle East, and Asia. These partnerships should not only secure access to raw materials, but also enable co-investment in local processing and infrastructure—an offer that goes beyond extraction and addresses shared economic development.
He noted: “We’ve got to start making better offers. Because China already is.”
Key takeaways from the session:
The urgency is real. We are not only in a resource competition but a geopolitical one.
Friendshoring isn’t charity—it’s smart economics and strategic security.
Europe must move from policy poetry to delivery prose. Governance, coordination, and speed are now strategic assets.
Creating clear points of contact and leadership across member states is essential to attracting investment and building trust with global partners.
This is not a race we can afford to lose—and catching up demands bold, collaborative moves.
